ICAT Playdate: From Independence to Overlord: America's Journey to D-Day

Term: Fall 2026

Date: November 13th, 2026

Time: 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

Location: Community Assembly in the Creativity + Innovation District Living-Learning Community 

Instructors: Phyllis Newbill & Jennifer Lancaster,

Presented By: Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT)

Description:

Continuing the Collaboration between ICAT and the National D-Day Memorial Foundation by Commemorating America's 250th Birthday.

This new prelude to When We Went In places D-Day within the broader arc of the American experience. Created in recognition of the United States’ 250th anniversary, the approximately 8½ -minutes of new content traces four defining conflicts—the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I, and World War II—through the words of the Declaration of Independence and military leaders George Washington, Ulysses S. Grant, John J. Pershing, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Using archival imagery, large-scale projection, and spatial audio—with the D-Day Memorial itself serving as the dramatic backdrop and canvas for the narrative—From Independence to Overlord explores how the nation’s founding ideals have been tested, defended, and redefined across generations. With no traditional narration, the words of these historic figures create a direct and powerful journey from the founding of the nation to the eve of D-Day, setting the historical and emotional context for When We Went In.
 

Speakers:
David Fraunsich, ICAT
Tanner Upthegrove, ICAT
Ethan Candelario, VT Marketing & Communications